A day later

Summary

It was nothing. I was being called to the full rehearsal of a five-act opera— a mere five acts!!! As a result, I’ll be quite serious today. “So much the better”, you may say. For I suspect you think that I’ve indulged in quite enough digressions and amused myself quite enough with words, people and ideas, and even with things hardly fit for joking about—that in an academic, musical and moral correspondence like this I should speak of music and morality, instead of quoting Bacchic, Pantagruelic, fantastic songs, very daringly cut and not at all decent, which scandalise devout souls, and cause young people of fifteen and sixteen to avert their eyes, while those of forty-nine and fifty find their spectacles quivering on their noses.

Listen, to be honest, it’s Monsieur de Pradel’s fault; I couldn’t resist the pleasure of acquainting you with a verse of his song. And naturally I had to choose the one which has to do with music; hence “godlike we sing” and “filling Hell with the ring” and Gabriel’s “litanies”, which, I fear, may have startled you a bit.

But suppose I’d continued my quotation, and reproduced in its entirety the refrain of this damnable hymn:

Hurrah for Hell, we’re on our way!

Come, damsels,

Sweet Mam’selles,

Let’s drink today;

Sing “Hey!”,

Come and play,

And swigging away

Let’s stay

Gay.